Wednesday, April 18, 2018

Adam was among the intelligences spoken of by the Lord to Abraham who were appointed to be rulers on this earth. He was Michael, a prince, and son of God chosen to come to this earth and stand at the head of his posterity, holding the "keys of salvation under the counsel and direction of the Holy One, who is without beginning of days or end of life." This Holy One is Jesus Christ. On the earth Michael was known as Adam. In the pre-existent state he was a spirit like the others of our Father's children. In the Book of Genesis we are told that Adam obtained his body from the dust of the earth, and that he was not subject to death is inferred in the commandment the Lord gave him, that if he transgressed the divine commandment and ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he should surely die. In the Book of Mormon we are positively informed that Adam would have lived forever in the garden if he had not partaken of the forbidden fruit. So Adam was in no sense mortal until after his transgression. That his immortal spirit came from another world is verily true, just as it is true of each one of us, for we all lived in the spirit existence before we came into this world and obtained bodies which inherited mortality through the fall of Adam.

We are also informed in the scriptures that before Adam and Eve transgressed they were without children, and the fall was essential to the peopling of the earth with their offspring. When the truth in relation to the consequences of the fall were made known to Adam and Eve, they rejoiced, and Eve said:

"...Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient. ....

Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, Vol 1, Chapter 2.

So much to address here!

First: There was and is no such thing as pre-existing intelligences or spirits waiting to be created/born. 1 Cor. 15:46: However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, then the spiritual. Adam was created out of the dust of the ground and did not exist spiritually prior to that.

Second: Adam was NOT “Michael, a prince.” Michael was/is an archangel (Jude 1:9, Rev.12:7) who is referred to in Daniel as a “prince” (Dan. 10, 12). Angels were never humans, nor will humans ever be angels; they were created before humans (Job 8:37). Adam was created after the angels.

Third: Adam never had any “keys of salvation.” There are no such things ever mentioned in Scripture, and Adam was not responsible for salvation in any way, shape, or form.

Fourth: Referring to the Book of Mormon is only teaching lies about lies, since the BOM is a fraudulent document.

Fifth: Adam and Eve were able to have children before the Fall; after all, God told them to “be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it” (Gen. 1:28); if they were unable to have children before the Fall, then God is lying to them here. The fact that they had no children prior to the fall only means that the Fall came before a child was born, for there is no reason Eve couldn’t have, or wouldn’t have been with child.

This whole ideology is based on the NEED for Adam & Eve to sin so that they could procreate. This is utter unbiblical nonsense, as anyone actually reading the Bible should understand.

(For some humor about Smith’s grammar, I’d like to point out that the phrase, “that he was not subject to death is inferred in the commandment…”, should read “implied” vs “inferred.” We infer what is implied. This is a very common mistake nowadays, but you’d think a “prophet of God” would know better.)

What about Brigham Young’s teaching that Adam was God? Mormon teachers seem to be quite mixed up as to just who Adam was. Of course they are also mixed up about Jesus and God; perhaps they should read the Bible once in a while.

Tuesday, April 3, 2018

Thus to bear witness of Joseph Smith is to bear witness of Jesus Christ, who sent him, in the same way that a testimony of Christ also implies clearly a testimony of the Eternal Father, who sent Him. On the other hand, to deny Joseph Smith outright—to deny the spiritual impressions which attest to his prophetic assignment—is to deny the Lord who sent him.

So, if you deny that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God, you are thereby denying Christ?!?! Doesn’t that then make accepting Joseph Smith as a prophet of God a requirement for salvation? Since when is anything but faith in Christ a requirement for salvation?Then again, how about if I deny Joseph Smith as a prophet and then I am indeed denying the “Lord” who sent him, his “Lord” being the devil!

Sunday, April 1, 2018

“Question: “Can you please tell me why members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints do not observe Good Friday as other Christians do?

Answer: The reason why we do not observe Good Friday should be clear enough. Easter is taken from a pagan spring holiday, that was governed by the moon. The Roman Catholic Church connected the birth of the Savior with this pagan ceremony. As you know, Easter is governed by the moon, and this spring pagan festival was celebrated according to the moon, any time in March and the end of April.

THE RESURRECTION DATE DID NOT VARY. Now as you well know that the resurrection did not vary and it is foolish to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord at the end of March or the first of April, or middle of April or near the first of May, and put Good Friday the Friday before the Easter Sunday. I think you are wise enough to see the foolishness of it. The resurrection of the Savior does not vary year by year but it is a constant thing. Why should we follow the silly custom rather than to have one day for the resurrection?”

The author of this “answer” demonstrates his total ignorance of the origin of Easter being celebrated in the Christian church.

Easter is about celebrating the resurrection of Christ, which was originally done by Christians meeting on the first day of the week since that was the day of the week during which Christ rose from the dead. So in essence, every Sunday is a celebration of Easter (this word originates from a German word meaning “resurrection”).

Some time during the 2nd century (long before Roman Catholicism) early Christians began setting apart a special time to celebrate the Resurrection, and it was based on taking place during the Jewish Passover. Easter is celebrated during the time of the Passover because that is when Jesus was crucified. The Passover is based on the Jewish calendar; as described by Wikipedia: The Passover begins on the 15th day of the month of Nisan, which typically falls in March or April of the Gregorian calendar. Passover is a spring festival, so the 15th day of Nisan typically begins on the night of a full moon after the northern vernal equinox. However, due to intercalary months or leap months falling after the vernal equinox, Passover sometimes starts on the second full moon after vernal equinox, as in 2016. This is the reason Easter varies in dates—Passover is “governed by the moon,” but the festival is not pagan. Passover was established by God.

Why does it matter what day we choose to specifically celebrate the Resurrection? Did it ever occur to you that the point of celebrating during the Passover is for the symbolism? So how is it silly?

Yes, over the years, a lot of pagan trappings were brought into the celebration of Easter, but that doesn’t make the celebration itself pagan any more than the celebration of Christmas is pagan due to the import of pagan trappings.

Smith’s claim about Easter is exactly like most Mormon teachings — one big LIE. What is truly “silly” is the whole false religious cult of the Latter-day Saints.